The Christmas Re-Gift...A New Take

So this is how it played out. A few weeks ago, my dad called and asked me to find a Christmas gift for my mother. This is not an uncommon occurence. That gay gene is good for something. Anywho, my mother is often wise to this game and has an uncanny knack to call within 48 hours of my dad with a list of things she would like. Sometimes, she even manages to place her call before him. You also have to understand that they live in the same house and I am the middle-man who is 500 miles away.

My mother wanted some jacket from Talbot's (hey--she is their target demographic--no judgment). I went to Talbot's and procured said item made of red corduroy. I told my dad how much he owed (which was exactly half the cost of the jacket as we did not want another heart attack and knew my mom was good for the rest). My mother was here a few weeks ago, I sent the jacket with her, she even had it dry-cleaned, and best of all, she paid me for it.

Now, fast forward to this past weekend when we all gathered at their house to exchange gifts. Before the gift exchange, my dad had given me the $50. I gave it to my mom. We were good to go. All was well. My mother opened the jacket, acted surprised, my dad seemed pleased.

That was until this morning. He was going to the grocery store to pick up a few items and my mother gave him $40--the same two twenties he had given me (which I had given back to her, etc.) She simply placed the remaining $10 bill on the counter in the kitchen. My dad comes home, sees the $10 and the interchange goes something like this....

Dad says, "Is this my $10?"

Mom replies, "No, it's mine"

Dad chimes in, "Well it was mine and I gave it to Anshel (that would be me). What are you doing with it?"

Mom: "Uh, he owed me money for something. How do you know it was yours?"

Dad: "Because I recognize that bill. That's the way I fold it."

Busted. WTF? How close is my dad to his money that he now recognizes individual bills? Seriously, people. You cannot make that shit up. Oh well, Happy Holidays.